Dance of the Damned

Unpleasant

"Roshi, are you alright?" Oscar walked up to Micah who had this annoyed look on his face.

"I am fine." He said, forcing a smile on his face. "By the way, I want some more of the buns from the cafeteria. Can you go with me?"

Elizabeth stared at Micah for a second before sighing, "Sure, but we will have to hurry. I don't want to leave my father for too long."

"He still has quite some time," Micah said, grabbing onto her sleeve. "Shall we go?"

"Will you be alright with him, Sir Oscar?" Elizabeth asked, looking at the man.

"Of course." He said, pulling out the will. "I need to clear some things with your father too."

"Ok."

"Come on, let's go," Micah said, pulling the woman with him as Oscar stared at them walking away.

His blank expression turning into a frown as soon as they were out of view.

I heard Roshi shouting his name. He thought, staring at the door. Roshi never raised his voice before. What did he say or do that made Roshi this mad?

Opening the door, he came face to face with Britton.

"Carvill. I have questions." He said, confusion written all over his face.

"If you weren't injured right now and at death's door, I would have punched you," Oscar said, holding his fist up at him after closing the door.

"Huh?? I am the victim here."

"What did you say to make Roshi that mad??" Oscar asked, black eyes glistening as he glared at him emptily. "I have put up with you for so long. You and your nonsensical antics.

"The only reason why most of the people even tolerated you was because Roshi would just let you be.

"But you pushed it too far when you made him mad." Oscar walked to the man, grabbing him by the collar and pulled him up, though he hissed in pain. "Roshi NEVER gets mad."

"You're going to kill me, Carvill!" The man shouted as the wounds all over his body started to feel like pricking needles all over.

"What do you get out of disrespecting him like that??" Oscar asked, pushing him back on the bed.

"Hey, I am the one that got burnt here." Britton snapped at Oscar who only gave him a cold gaze.

"So did Roshi." He said, crossing his arms over his chest. "You may have thought you saved those kids but you only got injured TRYING to save them and then fainted.

"Roshi was the reason you, your daughter and those kids even survived. He almost died. For scum like you. What bull***t."

"But he didn't. I am the one dying here!" Britton hissed, laying down on the bed with a groan. "He can heal himself. If you ask me, with that kind of ability, he should be doing more. He is just a baby over pain."

"Imagine yourself in his situation," Oscar said, pulling out the sword from his side and walked to the man. Without warning, he pierced him through his arm and quickly clasped a hand over the man's mouth.

"How did that feel?" Oscar asked, looking at him like he would an insignificant bug.

"What do you think you are doing?!??" The man asked, clutching his hand in pain.

"Don't be such a baby," Oscar said, a menacing smile coming on his face. "The doctors will patch you up in no time, why are you worried about a little pain? It's just a poke."

Eyes widening, Britton stared at Oscar and gulped. "You are a monster."

"You only realised that now?" Oscar asked, pulling out a handkerchief and began wiping the blade. "I have killed countless people before, in every technique and, unlike Roshi, I am not as kind to people I don't need anymore."

Satisfied with the cleaning, he shoved the sword back into his belt and pulled up a chair for himself.

"So, tell me now, what did you talk about with Roshi." He said, staring at him. "And don't leave a single thing out."

____________________

I don't want to die. Please! Please!

Is it money you want? We will give you money, please just leave us alone!

Please!

Get out of here! Go!

Frowning, Micah shook his head trying to clear the memory running around his head and tried focusing on the present instead.

"I can't really understand you," Elizabeth said, staring at Micah biting into another loaf of bread, smiling happily.

"Me?" Micah asked, pointing to himself, some of the chocolate spread on his cheek. "What is there not to understand about me?"

"I wonder." She sighed, pulling out a napkin and wiped his cheek with it.

The two were in the almost empty cafeteria with hardly anyone in the place except them and the ladies selling the buns.

"Want one?" He asked, holding another bun to her. "I have several."

"You really are strange." She said, a smile coming on her face as she took the bun from him. "But ... thank you."

"There is a lot more where that came from," Micah said, holding up a paper bag full of the buns.

"I didn't think a kid like you would have that many coins on you," Elizabeth said, biting into the bun. "For a second, everyone thought you stole it."

"I am fortunate enough to not have to steal to eat," Micah said, softly. “Well, one thing at a time, right?”

“I really, really do not understand you,” Elizabeth said, biting into the bun again. “But I have not been able to give you my proper appreciation.

“I do not know how you escaped that fire but, you still saved us.” She smiled at the boy. “You have my appreciation and I owe you my entire life.”

“Don’t do that,” Micah said, not smiling while turning to the woman. “Don’t owe your life to anyone. It is your life alone. It shouldn’t be owed to anyone.”

“You certainly are … odd.” Elizabeth chuckled. “Alright, I won’t say that. By the way, how old are you?”

“I am going to be fifteen in two days,” Micah said, demeanour changing again as he grinned at the woman.

“Fifteen??” She gasped, getting to her feet. “You are so young. S-shouldn’t you be in bed? What are you doing in a hospital … alone? Where are your parents?”

“They are watching over me, don’t worry,” Micah said, grinning at her. “I mean, they had to leave earlier, but they are always with me. I am sure of it.”

“O-oh. I am so sorry. I didn’t mean-“

“No no.” Micah shook his head happily biting into another bun as chocolate oozed out of it and into his mouth and cheeks. “I like talking about them.”

Subconsciously, Elizabeth wiped away the chocolate while listening to him speak. “Really?”

“Yeah. It makes me feel like they actually existed and were not figments of my imagination or something.” Micah said, chuckling nervously.

“I can understand the feeling,” Elizabeth said, looking at the wall ahead of her and sighing. “When my mother died, one by one, people stopped talking about her and then, I begin to wonder if she even existed.

“If not for the pictures of her that my father kept, I don’t think I would have remembered her face. Then again, she was well known in the business world, so I doubt that happening,”

“She sounds like an incredible woman,” Micah said, beaming at her.

“She was,” Elizabeth said, beaming as well. “She was also so pretty. Father told me that I look exactly like her all the time and … I can’t really tell. I am not as pretty as she was or as brilliant.”

Micah stared at her for a second and then quickly devoured his bun, wiping his hands on a napkin, he turned to her, “Do you mind if I touch your face?”

“Touch my face?” Elizabeth asked, surprised. “Why?”

“I can make out people’s faces like this,” Micah said, holding his hands out. “They are clean. Don’t worry.”

“O-ok?” She said, leaning forward as Micah began to feel every nook and cranny of her face, nodding while his fingers traced all the bumps and curves. “You are very thorough.”

“I have to be,” Micah said, pulling his hands away and beaming. “You have very sharp features. I think, if I could see you, I would think you are very pretty. And for your intellect, you are going to do incredible things in the future. So don’t put yourself down too much.”

“How do you know that?” She asked, looking at him while touching her face, the feeling of his fingers still slightly there. “Can you see the future or something?”

“Maybe,” Micah said, going back to eating his bread.

“Father said something about yo-“

“I think that is something you should talk about with him.” Micah suddenly interrupted her, not looking. “Not me.”

“bu-“

“Elizabeth.” The woman turned to see Oscar standing there. “Your father. You need to hurry.”

Gasping the woman ran past the two and out of the cafeteria, holding her skirts up as she took off as quickly as she could.